Episode 125

June 5, 2018

125: Travelling for work

As designers our jobs can be done from anywhere! Ironically this can often mean that we don’t need to travel for work within a company, but opportunities can still arise to work with a team in another office, visit a client, go on a user research trip or perhaps travel to a conference. In this episode we discuss our experience with travelling for work, and share advice on how to stay productive during the break in your usual routine.

“Realistically you can’t get as much work done while travelling. Try and stay flexible and open.”

— Femke

Key takeaways

Realistically, you can’t get as much done while travelling as you can at home. Don’t expect to be totally keeping up with your side projects while you travel, you’ll just set yourself up for disappointment!

Your company will pay for your flights and accommodation for a work trip, and generally the food and drink you’ll consume on it too! If you’re unsure of your companies work travel policies and you’re about to go on a trip; just ask.

When doing remote work travel, you won’t see as much of the place you’re in as if you were on vacation. Use lunch breaks and evenings to explore, and make the most of “living like a local” by visiting a coworking space or a cafe to get your work done.

Your work trip will be most successful if you set expectations beforehand. What do you want to get out of it? What will the schedule be like? Set these with your team and you’ll all be on the same page.

Show timestamps

01:30 – Catch up
06:20 – Our experiences travelling for work
10:25 – Managing workload while travelling
14:00 – How travelling for work… works
20:10 – Remote work travel vs travelling for work
25:30 – Travelling with workmates
29:45 – Setting expectations for a work trip
33:00 – Best advice to people new to travelling for work